Small Business Saturday: Plato’s Closet and Clothes Mentor

What goes around: Racks at Plato's Closet feature a tidy display of today's top fashions arranged neatly by size and color.

As the mother of six children, Kellie Robertson knows first-hand how important good bargains are. It is part of why she and her husband Neil Robertson, decided to open Plato’s Closet in Point Plaza on Central Avenue in 2007, to help make it easier for kids to sport designer threads on a budget.

“We’re not a thrift store where you’re going to be digging through piles. We only have top quality items,” said Robertson. This national franchise specializes in brands hot among today’s teens including Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister, and American Eagle, at a fraction of the price you’ll find at the mall.

Plato’s sells gently-used clothes, outerwear, shoes, and accessories for boys and girls, and offers top dollar for name-brands, so last season’s clothes can become a down payment on this year’s school wardrobe.

In today’s down economy, recycling clothing just makes sense, and it’s a trend that the Robertsons have successfully capitalized on. In 2008, she and her husband added a second location in Schenectady, down the street from the Rotterdam Mall. In 2010, they added to their growing resale empire by opening Clothes Mentor, another national franchise that caters to style-savvy adults. The store is right next to the original Plato’s Closet so parents can browse alongside their teens.

Clothes Mentor offers a wide array of clothing, including 0 to plus size 24, maternity wear, and accessories, including Coach and Dooney & Bourke handbags. Customers can expect to get the same designs you saw on the racks at the mall, but for about 70% off. “In this economy, it’s the best thing around,” she says.

And if you’re looking for a little extra Christmas money this season, the store also offers cash on the spot for recent fashions in good condition.

“People are very excited that we’re here, both to buy and to sell,” Robertson says.